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Co-operation in Social Dilemmas Through Position Uncertainty

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  • Andrea Gallice
  • Ignacio Monzón

Abstract

We present a natural environment that sustains full co-operation in one-shot social dilemmas among a finite number of self-interested agents. Players sequentially decide whether to contribute to a public good. They do not know their position in the sequence, but observe the actions of some predecessors. Since agents realise that their own action may be observed, they have an incentive to contribute in order to induce potential successors to also do so. Full contribution can then emerge in equilibrium. The same environment leads to full co-operation in the prisoners’ dilemma.

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  • Andrea Gallice & Ignacio Monzón, 2019. "Co-operation in Social Dilemmas Through Position Uncertainty," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 129(621), pages 2137-2154.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:econjl:v:129:y:2019:i:621:p:2137-2154.
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1111/ecoj.12636
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    Cited by:

    1. Jacopo Bizzotto & Toomas Hinnosaar & Adrien Vigier, 2022. "The Limits of Commitment," Working Papers 202206, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo Business School.
    2. Monzón, Ignacio, 2019. "Observational learning in large anonymous games," Theoretical Economics, Econometric Society, vol. 14(2), May.
    3. Laura Doval & Jeffrey C. Ely, 2020. "Sequential Information Design," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 88(6), pages 2575-2608, November.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • C72 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Game Theory and Bargaining Theory - - - Noncooperative Games
    • D82 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Asymmetric and Private Information; Mechanism Design
    • H41 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Public Goods

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